First Encounters
by ashby
Summary: Just a story of what might have happened had three seven year olds met somewhere before a legendary train ride.


A/N: This is just another story of what would have happened had Harry, Ron, and Hermione met somewhere before the Hogwarts Express. I'd love to hear your thoughts! (  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own anyone mentioned in this story except for Mr. Lorens, and I really have no desire to own him.  
  
***********************************  
  
Seven year old Hermione Granger glanced nervously over her shoulder. She was quite positive that she was absolutely not supposed to be wandering off by herself, but she just really couldn't resist. She had grown increasingly more and more bored with her dad's discussion of the newest dental advancements with one of his "old dental school" buddies, and she had finally just been unable to take it any longer. It wasn't often that she was taken to London by her father; when she went to the city, it was usually with her mum. But her mother had been called away for an emergency root canal early that morning, and she'd been left in the care of her father who was already planning a trip to London that morning. He'd taken her, of course, and they'd spent the morning looking for a perfect birthday gift for her mum. They still hadn't found it at 12:30, which is when they decided to stop into a small café for lunch. It was at this café that Mr. Evan Lorens had spotted them and launched her father into a huge, rather boring discussion.  
  
It had been easy to escape, really. She'd told her dad she needed to go to the restroom, and he had nodded absently, never taking his eyes away from Mr. Lorens. Hermione had skipped the restroom, though, and headed straight for the exit that led into the middle of a large shopping center. She would go back soon; she just wanted to look around a bit by herself. Knowing exactly where she wanted to go (as she'd been to this shopping center several times with her mother), she headed for an escalator and rode it to the second floor. Without a second thought, she headed for Books 'N More. It was her favorite store, and her mum always bought her a new load of books every time they visited. Perhaps she would ask her daddy to accompany her back here once she'd rejoined him; he was a sucker and could be talked into anything.  
  
She entered the store with a smile on her face and headed toward the back of the shop where the children's books were kept. The children's section was empty except for one person- a tiny little boy with messy black hair and round glasses. He looked even smaller than he should have because the clothes he wore were at least a good two sizes too big for him. But despite his smallness, Hermione figured that he had to be about her age. He glanced up briefly when she joined him in the aisle, but he quickly looked back down at the book that was open in his lap as he sat cross- legged on the floor.  
  
Hermione, who was never one to be shy around strangers, stopped as she passed him and glanced down at the book he was reading. She recognized it immediately; she'd read it when she was five.  
  
"That's a good book," she told him knowingly.  
  
The boy looked up at her curiously, and she noticed that he had huge green eyes that seemed magnified to be even larger under his round glasses. "You've read it?" He asked the question in a very quiet, very timid voice as though he wasn't used to speaking to people.  
  
She nodded and dropped to her knees to study the shelf in front of her. "I read it a couple of years ago." Her eyes scanned the titles as she searched for an interesting title that she hadn't yet read.  
  
"Oh." The boy was quiet for a moment before asking again in his same soft voice, "What's it about?"  
  
Hermione's eyes fell on a book that looked semi-entertaining, and she pulled it off the shelf and opened it. Without looking up, she answered the boy's question. "It's about this girl named Dorothy who ends up in this magical land called Oz. And she has to go find a wizard to get back home, but she meets a scarecrow, a tin man, and a cowardly lion on the way. Oh yeah, and there's a witch after her, too."  
  
The dark-haired boy was silent for just a second before saying, "My aunt and uncle said I'm not supposed to believe in magic. There's no such thing as wizards and witches anyway."  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes just slightly in annoyance. "I know," she said with an air of impatience. "That's why it's called fiction."  
  
She looked up to see that the boy looked a little intimidated by her answer. She was just about to say something to smooth things over a bit when she heard a low snicker from the shelf. She looked up but saw nothing except books staring back at her. "What was that?" she asked, glancing at the raven-haired boy who shrugged.  
  
"I dunno."  
  
"Did you hear it, though?" she asked, looking once again at the shelf.  
  
He nodded. "Yeah. The shelf laughed."  
  
"Oh, honestly," she said with a roll of the eyes. "Shelves cannot laugh."  
  
The boy was about to reply, but they were interrupted once again by a snicker. Hermione, getting thoroughly annoyed, reached up and began removing books from the offending shelf. She was suddenly quite shocked to find herself staring into a pair of blue eyes through the gap in the books.  
  
"Who are you?" she asked haughtily to the person behind the shelf. She could see that it was a boy with freckles and a load of red hair.  
  
The freckled boy just blinked at her, a smirk on his face. "Who are you?" he asked in the same haughty tone she had used.  
  
Hermione was getting greatly annoyed by this boy, and she hadn't even said five words to him. "I asked you first."  
  
"So?" the boy raised his eyebrows at her. "I don't have to answer you."  
  
Hermione saw the smaller boy watching the exchange intently. She turned her attention back to the boy behind the shelf and rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Come over here."  
  
"Make me."  
  
Okay, she was getting seriously angry. Huffing loudly, she stood up and marched down the aisle so that she could turn up the next and view the annoying boy face to face. She noticed that the dark-haired boy moved so that he could look through the hole in the books. Once on the other side of the shelf, she saw the redhead standing a few feet away, smirking at her.  
  
"Come to make me, have you?" he asked, his blue eyes flashing with a hint of daringness.  
  
"How old are you?" she demanded, now thoroughly fed up with him.  
  
"Why should I tell you?" His arms were now crossed over his chest as he kept shooting her that stupid little smirk.  
  
Hermione tried desperately to think of a reason as to why he should tell her his age, but for once, her brain was drawing a blank. "Just tell me," she said finally.  
  
"Seven." It was a simple statement made by a very cocky looking boy.  
  
Hermione laughed bitterly. "Funny. You act three."  
  
The red-haired boy's smirk faded, and he shot her a look of distaste. "I don't like you," he said simply.  
  
Hermione briefly wondered why he thought this statement was going to deter her. Feigning a hurt look, she said, "Excuse me while I go cry."  
  
To this, the boy said, "Well, how old are you?"  
  
Hermione answered him with an air of superiority. "Seven."  
  
"Funny," he said, mocking her. "You act like my grandmum, and she's 60."  
  
She just rolled her eyes and shook her head slightly. "When you copy the essence of someone else's insult and try to use it on them, it loses its touch."  
  
The freckled boy just stared at her for a moment, and she was not surprised to see confusion covering his face. She was used to children her age being confused by her, and she secretly liked the fact that she could make so many of them feel stupid. It was obvious that he was trying to come up with a good response, but they were interrupted as another child joined them on the aisle. It was the boy with the glasses. He looked at them shyly, and Hermione noted that he was just as small as he'd appeared to be while sitting down. "Hi," he said quietly.  
  
The redhead looked at the other boy and said, "You're the one that was reading the book about the wizard, right?"  
  
The bespectacled boy nodded slightly and said, "Yeah. Well, I was looking at it anyway."  
  
Hermione saw the redhead nod and say, "I'm Ron," to the other boy. He looked briefly at Hermione before wrinkling his nose and turning back to the dark-haired boy. "I don't know who she is, and I don't really care."  
  
"I'm Harry," the other boy said quietly. Hermione noticed that the one who had just named himself as Ron widened his eyes a bit at the name, but then shook his head dismissively as though he'd just had a silly thought that couldn't possibly be realistic.  
  
"I'm Hermione." She spoke up loudly with a nasty sneer at Ron.  
  
To her disgust, Ron just returned the look. "And we care because…"  
  
Hermione wanted to strangle the boy in front of her. "You are the most insufferable person I have ever had the displeasure of been acquainted with!" she said furiously.  
  
Both of the boys stared at her in shock, obviously confused by her use of words. Ron, though it was clear he did not completely comprehend her insult, searched for one to throw back at her. "Yeah… Well… Well, you're a prat!"  
  
This made the smaller boy, Harry, laugh. Hermione shot him a quick glare before returning her attention to Ron. "I cannot tell you how daunted I am by your vast range of discourteous comments." Her voice was dripping with sarcasm, and she was purposely using the largest words she could find in her seven year old vocabulary in an attempt to completely befuddle both of the boys. She was finding them both, even Harry, extremely annoying.  
  
Apparently, it was working quite well.  
  
They both looked at her with slightly raised eyebrows and completely stupefied expressions covering their faces. It took them a good minute to come up with a reply. It came from, of course, the more annoying of the two. Ron.  
  
"Yeah? Well, you know what?"  
  
She couldn't wait to hear this. "No. What?" she challenged, struggling to keep the pleased smile off of her lips.  
  
"Your teeth are too big for your head." He said this very seriously as though he'd just given the best insult known to man. For some reason, this petty excuse for an insult made Harry burst into giggles.  
  
Hermione raised a hand to her mouth self-consciously and said nothing for a moment. Finally, she spoke to him, her hand still half-covering her mouth. "They are not! My parents said they're just growing in at an unusually fast pace, and they know because they're both dentists!" Then, not being able to resist another jibe, she added, "And at least I have teeth!"  
  
Both of the boys were missing their top two teeth, leaving huge gaping holes in the center of their mouths. Not that this was unusual; most of the children in her class were sporting the same missing teeth look. But she just couldn't resist.  
  
Before the boys could offer a retort, they were interrupted by three more children. Without even asking, Hermione immediately knew that the three new children were related to Ron; they all had the same red hair and freckles that he did. Two of them were identical twin boys who looked to be two or three years older than her, and the other one was a girl who looked close to her age but might have been a year or two younger.  
  
They came bustling around the corner and skidded to a halt when they saw what was obviously their brother. "Ron!" exclaimed the little girl. "We've been looking all over for you!"  
  
Ron looked at his siblings. "Where did you come from?"  
  
One of the twins spoke this time. "We've been with Mum and Percy, and then you ran off."  
  
The other twin interrupted, "And boy is Mum mad!"  
  
His twin and little sister both nodded eagerly in agreement.  
  
"Well, I was bored!" protested Ron, glancing at Harry and Hermione, his face tingeing red, obviously in embarrassment at being scolded by his siblings.  
  
"Ron," the little girl spoke up with wide eyes, "Mum said when she finds you, you're gonna be in huge trouble." She emphasized the word 'huge' with a lower voice. Hermione noticed the little girl glance at Harry; her eyes widened even more, and she bit her lower lip before leaning unconsciously against a display of book lights and knocking several off.  
  
Ron, on the other hand, was looking extremely nervous by the news that his siblings were bringing him, and he looked at the twins. "What did she say?" he asked in a much quieter voice than he'd been using earlier.  
  
The twins both shrugged, and one of them said, "I dunno. But whatever happens, take it like a man." He clapped his younger brother on the back ceremoniously and spoke with the utmost seriousness.  
  
Ron couldn't possibly have looked less like a man. He looked like a nervous puppy, in fact. Hermione saw Harry watching the exchange uneasily, and even she felt a bit sorry for the annoying little twit.  
  
Almost as if on cue, a woman came bounding up the aisle at full speed, another redheaded boy, this one older than the twins, close at her heels. Hermione knew immediately that this was the mother in question, though she couldn't see why the children all seemed so frightened of her wrath. She was a very pleasant-looking woman, short and plump with the same red hair as her children; the only thing odd about her was her outrageous dress, but Hermione shrugged this away.  
  
She ran instantly to the youngest boy, dropped to her knees, and wrapped him in a tight hug. "Oh, Ron! I've been worried sick!" Hermione saw Ron's face turn an even deeper crimson over his mum's shoulder. He did, however, look quite relieved at the fact that she was hugging him instead of beating him. "I thought something terrible had happened! I'm so relieved that you're safe! You're okay, right?!"  
  
"I'm fine, Mum," Ron spoke quietly and timidly.  
  
At his words, the woman pulled away and stood up, a completely different look covering her face. She instantly grabbed his hand in a yanking fashion and forced his attention to her. "You are in big trouble, young man," she was speaking firmly and irritably, something quite opposite from the way she had sounded before. "You just wait 'till we get home…" Her trail of voice left only the worst possibilities to be imagined. "Come on!" she said strictly to the other four children. They all followed their mother back down the aisle as she yanked the youngest boy behind her.  
  
Ron turned and mouthed a "Bye" to Harry, his face showing his inner nervousness. Hermione saw Harry give a small wave in response. She turned her head to see if Ron was going to offer her the same farewell, but he just glared at her and stuck his tongue out quite briefly before disappearing around the corner.  
  
Seeing Ron get into trouble over running off made her suddenly remember that she had done the exact same thing. Not wanting to meet the same fate as the horrid little redhead, she looked at Harry and said, "I have to go!"  
  
Harry opened his mouth to say something, but was cut short by the appearance of yet another adult. It was another woman, but she looked exactly the opposite of Ron's mum. This woman had short black hair and was so tall and skinny that she somehow resembled a telephone pole.  
  
"You!" she seethed in Harry's direction. "We're finished. Come on!"  
  
Harry nodded quickly and made an instantaneous move to join the woman who Hermione assumed was his mother. He was still clutching the book he'd been looking at in his hand, and as he neared the woman, she grabbed it from his clutches. "Put this up!" she ordered fiercely. "You're not getting anything!"  
  
Harry nodded again and reached for the book to return it, but the woman suddenly pulled it out of his reach and looked at the cover. Her face turned as red as Ron's hair had been. "What do you think you're doing?! Reading rubbish like this! No wonder you're so stupid!" Harry said nothing; he just glanced nervously at the floor. The woman obviously did not appreciate this, as she grabbed his chin forcibly with her free hand and jerked it up so that he was looking at her. "How many times have I told you that there are no such things as magic and wizards and witches and the lot?!" She sounded absolutely furious, and Hermione was even growing a bit afraid of her.  
  
Harry, too, looked positively terrified. He couldn't get his words out straight. "Um… Many… Uh…"  
  
"You answer me!" The woman bent down to bring her face close to Harry's. She was looking more dangerous by the second, and Hermione saw the fear creeping across the small boy's face.  
  
"Many times, Aunt Petunia. I… I don't believe in it…" he was still stuttering, and Hermione was surprised that the woman in question was not his mother but his aunt.  
  
"Then what are you doing looking at rubbish like this?!" She waved the book furiously over his head.  
  
"I… I was…" He couldn't seem to think up an answer.  
  
"I was looking at it!" Hermione spoke up suddenly. "But I needed to reach a book on a higher shelf, so I asked him to hold it for me." She backed away from the woman just a bit.  
  
Harry's aunt looked up at her and raised two thin eyebrows in her direction. She gave her an infuriated look, but Hermione was quite relieved to find that she didn't address her. Instead, she turned back to her nephew. "I've told you not to talk to strangers," she said sharply and tossed the book to the floor. "Come on, your uncle is ready to go!" She turned and stalked away, still quite furious.  
  
Harry gave one last quick glance at Hermione and whispered a very quiet, "Thanks," before following his aunt out of the store.  
  
Hermione felt bad for him. She couldn't imagine living with a woman who treated her like that. She hoped that Harry was only visiting his relatives and had a nice mum and dad to go home to. Sighing softly, she bent down, picked up the book, and replaced it on the shelf.  
  
Remembering yet again that she'd disappeared from her father, she quickly made her way out of the store and back down the escalator to the café she'd left him in. With a sigh of relief, she saw that he was still deeply engaged in conversation with Mr. Lorens. He looked up and smiled at her when she rejoined him in the booth.  
  
"I was beginning to think the toilet swallowed you up," he teased.  
  
Hermione returned the smile and shook her head. Then with a hopeful voice, she said, "Daddy, when you're done, may we go to the bookstore?"  
  
"Of course, Sweetheart," he said. "Just give me a few minutes, okay?"  
  
She nodded and placed her chin in her hands dazedly as she thought of the two boys she'd just encountered. She felt sorry for Harry, and she even felt a tiny bit sorry that Ron was in so much trouble. She reckoned, of course, that he deserved it for being so annoying.  
  
Mr. Lorens was still talking… and talking and talking and talking. He was extremely boring, and Hermione wished that something would happen to make him shut up. With a tiny grin, she imagined what he would do if his drink was to suddenly tip over and spill all over his brilliant business suit.  
  
And then quite suddenly, the glass in front of him fell with a loud thump onto the table, spilling a dark liquid all down the front of him.  
  
Hermione gasped as Mr. Lorens jumped up and let out a very naughty curse word. With a furious shake of his head, he turned to her dad. "I'm sorry, Bill, but I've got to take care of this. I'll catch you up later, okay?"  
  
Her dad, looking quite shocked himself nodded. "Of course." Mr. Lorens headed off in the direction of the washroom, and Hermione's dad turned to her. "You ready, Honey?"  
  
She nodded graciously and carefully sidestepped the mess of soda on the floor and booth. Taking her dad's hand, she grinned as they made their way out of the restaurant and toward the escalator. That little turn of events had certainly been curious.  
  
But then again, curious things happened to her all the time, so what else was new?  
  
***************************************  
  
I was bored again! I'd love feedback even though it's silly! 


End file.
